Kitten Therapy
by DarkGardenia
Summary: Lance wants to get closer to Keith but can't figure out how, until he's reminded of a scared, shy little kitten he once befriended. Just a little drabble based on my real life experience working with kittens. Laith/Klance.
1. Chapter 1

Lance lay in bed staring at the ceiling, uncharacteristically quiet and despondent. He was deep in thought, at a loss for what to do about the situation he'd found himself in.

Talking to people had never been something he struggled with and flirting had become second-nature. Until, that is, he found himself in lo— crushing on one of the most unapproachable people he'd ever met. None of his usual methods worked. However, while the object of his affections remained distant as ever, he found himself falling deeper every single day. Being stuck in space with only his crush and a handful of other people certainly wasn't helping the situation. No matter how standoffish Keith was, it was impossible not to learn more about him, being in such close quarters.

He sighed and rolled onto his side, pulling his long, lean legs up to his chest and crinkling his brow lightly as he let his mind dwell on the situation. His thoughts drifted to a stray kitten that had lived near the Garrison back on Earth. It kinda reminded him of Keith, now that he thought about it. Small, with soft, shiny black hair and bright eyes, but desperately mistrustful of people. It had taken forever for him to coax the small kitten into trusting him enough to take it safely to a shelter.

That was it! He sat up quickly, heart rate skyrocketing as it all fell into place. Keith was just like that little kitten. Jumping in headfirst like he usually did with new people wouldn't work, it would just scare him off. He needed to go slow, and gently allow the other boy to feel comfortable around him.

Keith; who had been living alone for so long, who had been through so much losing Shiro, who deserved to be loved and cherished but didn't trust anyone enough to allow it. Lance would do whatever he could to show him that it was ok to trust him with his heart.

It was a frustratingly slow process. The hardest part was finding a way to be alone with Keith regularly enough to begin the "kitten therapy". In the end it was by complete chance that Lance found the perfect opportunity.

After a particularly brutal training session he found himself wandering through some of the castles less frequented corridors, too restless to sleep. He ended up at an out of the way observation deck. It was smaller than the others, but it was hardly used and the perfect place to brood, with the entire outer wall made of thick glass displaying the dark, emptiness outside. Now that he thought about it, it should've been obvious that Keith would retreat there in his down time.

The other boy glanced up from where he was sitting, leaning against the window, gazing out into space. Neither said anything to the other, and Lance nearly turned around and left before he realised that this was the perfect time to initiate Operation Kitty. So, still not saying anything, he slowly walked to the other side of the room and sat, mirroring Keith by leaning against the glass. As hard as it was, he didn't acknowledge the other boy, didn't even glance at him. The silence was tense, Keith's uncertainty hanging in the air, but as the minutes ticked by he slowly started to relax and the two sat in agreeable silence.

This continued for months, with progress happening at an unbearable snails pace. It took a month alone for Keith to stop tensing up when Lance greeted him with a quiet "hey" upon entering the room. After two months he was able to sit on the same side of the room, and it took eight long months from the day he first walked in for them to be able to sit side-by-side.

It was worth it, Lance thought. To be sitting this close to Keith, who was no longer uncomfortable with his proximity; to feel his warmth and hear his gentle breathing. This wasn't something he'd ever thought possible, with how clearly reserved the other boy was. Then the day came when Keith sighed contentedly and leaned into Lance's body, resting his head on his shoulder, and he knew his kitten would be ok.


	2. Chapter 2

After being on his own for so long, it was rather a shock to the system for Keith to suddenly find himself part of a close-knit group like Voltron. Not that he minded the other paladins, in fact he actually found himself growing to like them all quite a bit. It did get too much at times though, which is why he had taken to wandering some of the quieter corridors after training, where he was less likely to run into anyone. It was on one of these wanderings that he stumbled across a small observation deck, with an entire glass wall looking out into the universe. It certainly wasn't the grandest observation deck in the castle, but it suited him just fine.

He regularly returned to the observation deck, and over time he found his thoughts taking an interesting turn. At first he'd just considered his situation in general and the other people he'd found himself stuck in space with, but slowly his mind zeroed in on one person in particular. Lance was everything he wasn't; open, friendly, personable, flirty. An outsider might think that Lance's envy towards him was one-way, but he had a fair amount of envy for the other boy himself. To be able to just **_be_** so easily, it wasn't something Keith really knew much about.

He sighed and wrapped his arms around his knees, gazing out into the darkness of space. He certainly wasn't doing himself any favours by hiding away in this room by himself during their downtime. He just didn't know what else to do.

***

Then one day, out of the blue, the exact person who'd been plaguing his thoughts walked through the door. They stared at each other, Keith keeping his expression nonchalant while Lance opted for the classic "deer caught in the headlights" look. For a minute it looked like Lance would simply turn around and leave. Keith was surprised when, instead of leaving, the other boy slowly and tentatively took a seat on the opposite side of the room.

Keith waited, body tense, for Lance to try drawing him into conversation, (or to start making fun of him), however as the silence dragged on he found himself relaxing. It was disconcerting having another person in his space like this, but as he became accustomed to the other's presence he found the companionable silence somewhat comforting.

Sharing the observation deck became a regular thing. At first they just continued to sit in silence, and eventually Keith stopped tensing up whenever Lance entered the room. The greetings, when they started, came in a quiet, soft voice, his tone gentle and not demanding reciprocation. Hearing a voice in his space, after so many weeks of complete silence, was a bit startling, though eventually it too became a comfort. It took him a while to notice, but Lance was also moving gradually closer to Keith's side of the room. He never pushed too far too quickly, always backing up slowly if Keith became overly uncomfortable. It was completely unexpected behaviour from the oft loud and over-the-top blue paladin, but Keith found himself slowly starting to trust the other boy.

As the weeks turned into months, they eventually found themselves sitting side by side. He wasn't exactly sure what had happened or how, but he felt like he could trust this boy. As he sighed and leaned against Lance's body he knew, he wasn't alone anymore.


End file.
